Joseph eldeb



J. ELDER.

omo'rxvs DRAW BAR.

LOO

Patented Oct. 16, 1888.

\ ENGINE (No Model.)

A n: 1 III:

UNITED STATES PATENT: OFFICE.

JOSEPH ELDER, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS,

- It. Locomotive- D'RAW BAR,

SPECIFICATION o ming part of Letters Patentivo'. 391,233, dated October 16. 1888. I Application filed July 14, 1888. Serial-Nd 279,916. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern: I

Be it knownthat I, JOSEPH ELDER,of.Peoria-, in the county of Peoria and Stateof'lllinois, have invented certain Improvements in Draw- Bars for Locomotives, of which the following is a specification.

. To those familiar with the subject it is a we1l-known fact that great difficulty is experienced in maintaining a close connection between locomotive engines and their tenders, as the severe strains upon the draw-bar connecting them produce rapid wear of the bar upon the pins, so that a highly-objectionable lost motion occurs between the engine and tender.

It is the aim of my invention to produce a simple and automatic device by which the draw-heads or buffers of the engine and tender 'may be drawn together and kept constantly in close contact; and to this end it consists, essentially, in a gravitating wedgeintroduccd between the inner or rear face of the drawhead and the head or coupling-pin of the drawbar, the wedge thus applied acting to pull the draw-bar into the draw-head.

I am aware that wedges have been driven between two draw-heads to force them apart, and that a horizontal wedge has been inserted behind the end of a coupling link or bar to force it outward tightly against the couplingpin; but I believe myself to be the first to apply a wedge in such a manner that it acts to urge the draw bar into the draw-head, and thus maintain a contact between the two draw-heads, and therefore I do not limit my self to the precise form or arrangement of the details herein shown, although I have represented in the drawings those forms which I find best adapted for practical use.

My takcup device may be used at either or both ends of the draw-bar, as preferred; but I have deemed it sufficient to illustrate in the drawings the application at one end only.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical section through the drmv-hcad for couplings of an engine and tender with my improvement applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the various parts of a draw-- head embodying my improvement separated from each other. Fig. 3 isaperspective view showing the draw-bar with its spheroidal head and hearing-plate.

Referring to the drawings, A and B represent the draw-heads or coupling-heads of the engine and tender, respectively; G, the drawbar connecting them; 1), the coupling piu by which the bar is united to the draw-head of the engine, and E the vertical pin by which it is connected to the draw-head of thetender.

Instead offorming the draw-head B in the usual manner, I provide it in the rear side 'with a vertical opening or inortis'e adapted to receive a plate, F, through which the drawbaris passed and against the rear face of which the couplingpin is seated. Between this bearing-plate F and the inclined face!) of the draw-head I insert;the gravitating wedge G, which is forked in such manner asto straddle the draw-bar. The parts are so proportioned that when originally assembled with the drawheads in contact the space between the plate F and surface I) is so limited that it will only admit the thin end of the wedge, which is thus maintained in an elevated position. As the wear upon the eyes of the draw-bolt and coupling-pin produces end play between the parts, the wedge vsettles down by gravity, and by forcing the plate F away from the surface 0 urges the draw-bar endwise into the head 13, thus compensating for'or taking up the wear, so that the contact between the heads is maintained. working upward under the pressure and vibration of the parts, I incline its rear face downward and rearward and give the corresponding face of the plate F a like inclination, as shown in Fig. 1, so that the plate by its press are tends to prevent the rising of the wedge. It is to be understood,however, that thisis not a vital feature ,of my construction.

In place of the coupling'pinE, I may form on the end of the draw-bar a head or enlargement, such as shown at c, Fig. 3, in which case the draw-bar must be inserted endwise through the plate F from the rear side. The plate F is in such case formed with a concave face corresponding with the face of the head 0, this arrangement permitting the bar to swing both laterally and vertically, as the relative movements of the engine and tender may require, without the loosening of the parts. \Vhen the draw-bar is shown, as in Fig. 3, with ahead, e, on one end and the eye on the In order to prevent the wedge from ICO other, the take-up wedge may be applied at one end, as in Fig. 1, and at the other end, as in Fig. 3. l

a The essence of my invention resides in the application of the wedge to the draw-bar or link in such manner, that the link is urged endwise into the head.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. Inatake-up for, railway draw-bars, the combination of a draw-head, a draw-bar, and an intermediate wedge, substantially as described, acting to urge the draw-bar endwise into the head.

2. In atake-np mechanism for railway drawbars, the combination of the. draw-head B, having an inclined surface, I), the draw-bar, the plate F, attached to the draw-bar, and the gravitating wedge G, located between the front 20 of said plate and the draw-head, as shown.

3. The combination, with the draw head having the inclined surface I), of the draw bar, the wedge U,- to the draw-bar,having its front face inclined upward and forward to overhang the wcdge,as

' described, whereby the accidental rising of the wedge is prevented.

4. In combination with the two draw heads, each having a gravitating wedge and a plate, F, therein, the draw-bar, having at one end the head or enlargement c and at the opposite end an eye or opening, and the coupling-pin inserted through said opening, as shown.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand, this 3d day of l\Iarch,l88S, in the presence of two attesting witnesses.

JOSEPH ELDER.

\Vitnesses: J AMES A. CAMERON, B. KELLOGG.

and the plate F, connected 

